Heater



June 3, 1941, l M. L. MUl-:LLER

HEATER Filed March 9, 1939 3 sheets-sheet .1

June 3, 1941. M. L. MUELLER HEATER Filed March 9, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 A IN VEA/TOR Melle/7 MIZ'ZZ A T ORNEY y June 3, 1941` `M. L. MUELLER lHEATER Filed March 9, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENT'OR Patented June 3, 1941 y sie' MATER Moritz lL. Mueller, Grosse Pointe, Mieli., assignor to Borg-Warnernorporation, @bisagra El., a

corporation or l l i.. n

d lllain'is.

This invention relatesto oil burning furnaces of the type generally described as space heaters, which are constructed in an ornamental cabinet and arranged to be placed directly within the room or space to be heated.

lt is an object of this invention to obtain more ecient heat exchange by the use oi an l.- Sliaped heat exchanger.

It is another object of this invention to provide for more ecient combustion by the use oi a down-blast air tube.

lt is another object oi this invention vto provide a single control i'or coordinating the supply of fuel to the burner and the opening of the draft or smoke pipe'.

lt is another object of this invention to provide a space heater which is arranged to provide a storage place for a considerable vquantity of fuel in such a position that the burner will operate by gravity iiow of fuel and so that the storage tanl; may conveniently be reiilled from a larger remote storage tank.

It is another object of this invention to pro- Fig. a represents a vertical section taken along the line tvb of Fig. 'Z and looking in the direction oi the arrows; and

Fig. 9 is a partial section taken along the line il-ti oi Fig. l and looking in the direction of the arrows. y

One factor controlling the emciency of a space heater is the amount oi heat which will be transterred from the burning gases through the walls of the combustion chamber to the air passing around the combustion chamber. in order toine crease the amount oi heat so transferred, l have provided an L-sbaped heat exchanger generally indicated at 2li, having a vertical cylindrical portion 22 and a horizontal cylindrical portion 2li. The two sections are joined as by welding, along the line 2t. A short piece of tube 2o is welded' into the upper portion oi the vertical cylinder at :it and forms an opening throught/nich the rlnirner may be attendedand lighted. The tube is may be closed by a suitable door di. The end oi the horizontal cylinder Eil is closed by a cirw vcular head @il having out-turned anges 3o which vide a space heater which will operate eciently under conventional draft conditions caused by the rise of heated air over the heat exchange system.

It is another object of this invention to provide a space heater which may be arranged to deliverA a forward blast of warm air along the floor without interfering with the natural draft characteristlcs of the heater.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from a' consideration oi the following specifica tion and the drawings, of which there are three sheets and in which.:

Fig. l represents an isometric `view oi the iront and top oi my space heater; y

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken along the line ii--t of Fig. i and looking in the direction of the arrows;

3 is a horizontal section talren along the line of Fig. li and loolring in. the direction of the arrows;

Fig. d `is a vertical section taken along the line lli-5i of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken along the line t-'n of Fig. 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a rear elevation of the heater shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 shows a modified form of my heater and represents a rear view of the heater with the back panel removed;

may be Welded to the cylinder 2i, for closing the same. A hole it is formed near the bottom side of the horizontal cylinder to which a smoke pipe lo is attached, for withdrawing tbe products oi combustion from the cylinder.

The vertical cylinder 2i? has a pressed ilange di toward its bottom portion, which is arranged to form a seal with a partition member itil. The

partition member it -has a hole in the center' thereof arranged to receive a pot type oil burner, generallyindicated at llt. The burner is sup ported on the partition member by means of a flange it which rests on the partition The partition may be held in place by means of welding or bolting the flange to the sidesoi the cylinder After the partition and the burner do have been installed in the cylinder it, the bottom oi the cylinder is partially closed by a lower partition plate which is bolted to the cylinder 222 byrneans of the bolts iid. The parti-f tion is provided with a hole in the center l thereof to allow the entrance of air to the space surrounding the burner do. l have provided a baille plate to below the hole 55 tocatcli any oil or dirt which may drip from the burner it. The battle to may be held in place by means of clips ad bolted or welded to the partition iii .and thebame 5t.

The burner it is .of the ordinary pot type construction having a cylindrical shell t0 perforated with air holes 62 through which Aair venters to support the combustion. The burneris provided with an oil inlet port 64 near the bottom and an intermediate baille 66. I have also provided a, top bame ring 68 which is separatedl from the top of the burner by means of studs 10. The baiile 68 operates to concentrate the ame rising from the re pot, andthe space between the baiile and the top of the repot provides for the passage of secondary air from the combustion chamber to the ame.

' In order to provide a supplyof additional air to the flame, I have provided a down-draft tube 12 from the top of the heat exchanger to a. point a short distance above the burner 46. The bottom of the tube 'i2 is closed by a plug T4 of fireresisting material, and the tube is slotted with air ducts 'I5 just above the plug I4. The tube 'i2 pass through the top of the horizontal cylinder 24 and forms an air-tight connection therewith at 78.

My heater also contains an oil storage tank 80 which is of cylindrical shape and which I have shown as being of a size suitable to iit generally underneath the horizontal portion 24 of the heat exchanger. The tank is provided at the outer end thereof with an opening 82 formed by a collar 84 fastened on the top of the tank. The

opening 82 provides space for installing an or-r dinary piston pump generally indicated at 86.

, The pump 86 is formed of a, casing 88, having a delivery spout 89, and has va connection 80 to an oil supply line 92 leading to a remote storage tank. The pump also has a check valve 94 and a piston 96 operated by the handle 98 which may be swung into or out of the cabinet enclosing the 'space heater.

A suitable float-controlled valve is generally indicated at |00. This valve has a connection at |02 to the-oilv tank and is connected through the pipe |04 to the burner 48. I have pro-vided a. shut-oir valve los between the outank and the valve. The valve is further provided with a regulating valve which is adjusted by the rod |08. The valve is of the ordinary oat type known to the art today and adapted to supply a, constant ow of oil according to the opening as set by the adjustment of rod |08.'

The rod |08 carries a collar I0 xed for rotationwith the rod midway between its ends.

The collar 0 has an eccentric 2 formed in.

tegrally therewith, to which is attached a rod ||4 arranged to operate a damper I6 in the smoke pipe 40. The damper I |6 is carried on a shaft 8 journaled in the sides of the smoke pipe and carrying an eccentric |20 at its upper end to which the rod ||4 is attached. It is thus apparent that as therod |08 is rotated by movement imparted to the control handle |22, the eccentric ||2 will move the rod ||4, which in turn moves the eccentric I 20, changing the position of the damper ||6. I have arranged these so that when the supply of oil is cut down by adjusting the control |22, the damper ||6 will be moved to its closed position. I have provided a damper ||6 which is smaller in diameter than the smoke pipe 40. This construction provides for some draft at all times and prevents the smoke pipe from being entirely closed.

The heat exchangen' valve, pump and oil stortwo side .panels |34. All of the panels have intumed anges, as indicated at |36, which may be bolted or welded to the adjacent anges to form the cabinet. It will be noted that the corner panels |30`are longer than the front and side panels, thus providing an open space |38 at the bottom of the cabinet between the panels and the floor.

One of the side panels |34 is provided with a door |40 through which access may be had to the oil storage tank and the pump 86. The other side panel |34 is provided with a door |42 through which access is had to the door 32 closing the combustion chamber and through which the burner may be lighted. The door |42 also provides access to a humidifier |44 which is a pan arranged near the heat exchanger from which Water may be evaporated into the room being heated.

The side, front and back panels are provided at the tops thereof'with a ange |46 which forms a ridge completely around the top of the cabinet. This flange |46 acts as a support for grille members |48. The grille members |48 have frames |50 which support forwardly inclined ns |52 which direct the warm air arising over the heat exchanger forward into the room being heated. 'Ihe front panel` |32 is provided with grilled openings |54 which have iins |56 inclined downwardly toward the front. These fins |56 direct the air entering through the grille upwardly and over the heat exchanger 20. They also allow direct radiation from the heat exchanger downwardly through the grille to the floor immedi- -ately in front of the cabinet. The front panel is also provided with a grilled opening |58 in the lower portion thereof. 'I'his grille allows air to circulate from the floor into the cabinet and up-v ward over the heat exchanger and is s'imilar'in construction to the opening |54.

As is clearly disclosed in Fig. 6, the rear panel |60 is stopped considerably short of the oor at |62. This allows easy access to the valve |00 and also provides additional space for air to enter the cabinet and circulate over the heat exchanger. The rear panel |60 also carries a control handle |22 to which the rod |08 is attached "for regulating the valve and damper. The heat exchanger is supported vupon twochannel members |64 which run from end to end of the cablnet. 4These channel members |64 may be bolted or welded to inturned anges |36 at the ends of the cabinet. If desired, they may be provided with independent legs for supporting the heat exchanger 20 and the tank 80 independently of the casing.

' The tank 80 is supported from the angle members |64 by means of two saddle members |66 which may be bolted to the angle members as at |68.

The valve |00 is supported upon a. plate |10 vwhich is in turn supported by the rear angle member |64 as by welding the plate to the bottom of the angle. i

From the above description, it should be apparent to anyone skilled in the art, that the unit, after being assembled, will operate as follows:

When the supply tank 80 is lled with oil by means of the pump 86, oil will ow at a steady rate through the valve |00 as adjusted by the rod |08 and the control 22. When this oil is lighted in the burner, combustion will take place with air entering through the hole 55 around the baille 56, and the products of combustion will pass out through the hole in the baie plate 68 in the form of a cone and will travel up the Vertical cylinder 22 and turn at right angles along the horizontal cylinder it. It will be noted that as the prod` ucts of combustion travel around the heat exchanger, they iirst rise to the top of the vertical chamber and then pass along the horizontal chamber where they are caused to descend to the outlet 38. This causes them to travel along the Walls of the heat exchanger, giving a high degree of efficiency in the heat exchanger. When a draft is set up, due to the passage of the hot gases through the heat exchanger and up the stack, the lower end of the down-draft tube 'l2 will be in an area of pressure considerably lower than the air surrounding the heater, and air will be drawn down the tube l and out the slots it. These slots may be set at an angle, causing the air to be drawn out in a rotating motion. This air not only aids in obtaining complete combustion yof the fuel, but also creates a turbulence in the products of combustion, which causes them. to come in contact 'with all the walls of the heat exchanger. The amount of heat delivered may be regulated by turning the control 22, which automatically varies the amount of oil delivered to the burner and at the same time changes the position of the damper tit, so that the draft will be efficiently regulated in proportion to the quanm tity of oil supplied.

With the heat exchanger in a heated condition, due to the combustion within it, air surrounding the space heater will pass through the openings itt at the bottom of the panels and through the grilled openings it@ and will rise over the heat exchanger and pass out the iop grilles itt. These grilles Mit, as has been explained, will give the air a forward motion into the room being heated. At the same time that this natural draft is causinga positive circulation or" heated air within the room, heat will be radiated directly from the heat exchanger downwardly through the grilles itil in the iront of the cabinet. This will heat the oor and the area immediately in front of the space heater, and it will not be necessary to wait until the heated air has circulated around the room before this area of the room is heated.

Considering now the modified iorm of the in-n vention illustrated in Figs. '5, 8 and 9, I have ,shown a space heater which has the same heat r exchanger 2t, burner, oil tank dit, pump, service doors, control and grilles H53, lt and 858 as the form of my invention shown in Figs. l. through 6. The modified form of my invention has added to the heater already described, means for creating.

a positive forced circulation of heated air. rIhese means may be added after the heater has once been put into service or may be constructed as an original part of the heater.

The forced circulation means are composed of a generally vertical duct '200 which is carried down the back side of the heat exchanger inside the cabinet. The duct 200 may be made of sheet metal, and I have shown it to be supported on a cross bar 202 which is fastened to the inturned flanges itt as at 204. The duct 206) carries at its upper end a hood member 20E which is curved around the top of the heat exchanger. The hood is spaced from the heat exchanger so as to interfere as little as possible with the natural flow of air over the heat exchanger when the forced draft is not in operation and also to allow air to be sucked into the duct 200 from around the heat exchanger. The duct 200 is carried by means of the screws or bolts 252.

2m so as to accommodate a blower wheel and hood assembly 212. The assembly 2li is made up of a blower wheel 2M carried on a shaft` Zit and enclosed in a hood 2l8. The shaft Zit may be journaled in the sides of the duct 200, as indicated at 22d, and is arranged to be driven by a motor 222 which is mounted on the angle member itil by means of bolts 224i. I have provided a rubber plate 26 between the motor and the angle in order to absorb any vibration caused yby the motor. blower wheel'shaft'by means of a coupling 22d.

The hood 2id has two holes ,230 in the center thereof, through which air is drawn from the duct 2t@ and discharged from the mouth of the hood 2id at 232. l

The mouth 232 ofthe hood Zit is provided with a :dared connection 23d to receive the end of a discharge tube or duct 2t@ which is curved at right angles as at 23h and arranged to lie along the floor underthe space heater and discharge into the room through the openings dit at the bottom of the cabinet.

From the above construction it is evident that when the motor 223 is operating the blowerwheel 2id, air will be drawn from around the heat exchanger through the duct it@ and discharged out the duct "ritt along the iioor of the room. This is anadvantage, since the natural draft circulation wiil nrst pass upward over the heat exchanger and out into the' top of the room, and it may be some time before the heat has settled to the lower portion of the room. lit is important to note that the operation of the blower 2id will not discontinue the natural draft circulation over the remainder of the heat exchanger, and this natural draft will continue to heat the other part of the room. It is further important to note that the space heater as thus arranged requires no manipulation of the grilles which allow the natural air currents to rise over the heat exchanger. The unit is in no danger of become ing overheated due to an interruption in the current supplied to the motor. Should the motor be stopped accidentally, the heat exchanger will continue to function as a natural draft heater without danger of overheating.

The motor may be supplied with current through a cord will having the usual plug-inconnection 252. The speed of the motor and therefore the amount of air circulated through the duct 238 may be regulated by means of a rheostat switch 2%, which may be fastened to the rear panel of the cabinet by bolts fastened through the hole 2%.

1n the construction of the enlarged portion of the hood 29u, as indicated at 2N, I have provided for an inner panel 250 to be bolted to the angle member iSd. This panel 250 carries a bushing for the blower wheel shaft M6. 'I'he other three sides and the bottom of the duct 2|@ are continuations of the main portion of the duct 20G, and the hood for the blower wheel ZIB may thus .be mounted in the duct 2t@ before the duct is placed in position and fastened to the plate 25@ The hood 2 I8 may be fastened to the duct 200 by means of angles 251i which are bolted to both the duct and hood.

It is obvious that my invention is adapted to y take many dilerent forms, and I do. not limit The motor shaft is connected to the' myself to the particular forms disclosed herewith.

What I claim is:

1. In a space heater, supporting means, a heat exchange unit supported on said supporting means, a cabinet surrounding said heat exchange unit and adapted to direct a natural draft of air upward over said heat exchanger, a duct having one end positioned near the top of said heat exchanger and the other end opening horizontally at the bottom of said cabinet, and means in said duct for drawing air, from the top of said duct and delivering it through the bottom of said duct.

2. In a space heater having a horizontally arranged heat exchanger and a cabinet arranged to direct a natural draft upward ove'r said heat exchanger, a duct having a hood positioned near the upper surface of saidheat exchanger, a second duct arranged to discharge horizontally from said space heater along the floor, blower means 20 adapted to suck air through .said hood and de liver it through said second-mentioned duct, and means for driving said blower.

3. In a space heater having a horizontally arranged cylindrical heat exchanger and a cabinet surrounding said heat exchanger adapted to di' rect a'natural 'draft upward and around said heat exchanger and out the top of said cabinet, a duct having an arcuate hood positioned around a portion of the upper surface of said cylindrical heat exchanger but spaced therefrom, a second duct arranged to deliver a blast of air horizontally along the oor from -said space heater, an enlarged portion in said rst-mentioned duct, a centrifugal blower located within the enlarged portion of said mst-mentioned duct arranged to deliver air to said second-mentioned duct, and an electric motor arranged to drive said blower.

4. In a space heater having an oil burning heat exchanger, a cabinet arranged to induce a natural draft upward over said heat exchanger andout the top of said cabinet, and duct means for withdrawing some of the heated air rising over said heat exchanger and delivering the same horizontally along the oor in front of said space heater, said duct means being spaced from said heat exchanger so 'as not to interfere with the natural circulation of air over said heat exchanger.

MORITZ L. MUELLER. 

